Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1887-12-01
THE DUPES' DIRECTORY.
VALUABLE LISTS WHICH ENABLE
SWlNDLERS TO CATCH VICTIMS.
How the City Directories are Compiled
and Used to Flood the NIaiIs-ExpIana-
tion of Snide Advertisements and
Swindling Circulars.

and Used to Flood the MaiIs-ExpIana-
tion of snide Advertisements and
Swindling Circulars.
1t has often puzzled people to understand
how the petty swindlers of our great cities
succeed in flooding the country with their
circulars, and in almost every instance get
ting their propositions to people who, if they
do not become dupes, at least read or con-
slider them. Judging by the number of let
ters sent to the New York postoffice authori-
ties every day by people who have received
propositions to buy counterfeit money or to
engage in other nefariouS schemes, several
thousand swindling circulars must leave New
York every evening for different parts of the
country. And the question naturally comes
up: How do these swindlers get hold of the
names of several thousand persons every day!
The answer is that this collection of names
and the distribution and sale of lists of names
OF possible dupes is systematized business
which has been carried on for years by special
lists, and probably affords very handsome
income to score Of sharpers whose sole stock
in trade is that they control whole books full
Of names and addresses
or course, in large city like New York
there are plenty Of legitimate calls for lists
OF persons who may be interested in buying
this or that article, and several well known
publications are devoted to the compilation
OF such lists. Some business men want only
rich people, because their wares are costly;
others want only poor people, because they
offer schemes for the saving Of pennies Each
trade has its special lists One man has list
OF all the doctors in the country, another Of
all the dentises, another will sell list con-
tanning every nillinsr, ETC., etc Each trade
journal is supposed to possess list of all the
business houses throughout the countr. In its
special line The compilation Of such lists
calls for nothing more than ordinary indus
try and business intelligence, and vet when
done suoh a list may be absolutely indispen-
sable to business house wishing to put
certain article before the country. The best
known ways of preparing such lists are very
simple One list Of all the doctors of the
United States, which was shown the writer,
had been compiled from the medical direc-
tories Of every state and county and from
the city directories in each large town. For
all practical purposes it is perfectly relia-
bic list Of some 10000 medical men. The
methods in other businesses are similar.
In the business OF compiling lists for
swindlers there is an entire change in the
methods used, and a popularity which will
be noted at once by inquirers is that dupes'
directory, as such a list may be termed, is
composed preferably of persons in difficulties.
When man wishes to sell soap to grocers or
househoiders, or diamonds to rich people, he
wishes every name on the list of people to
whom he will send circulars to represent a
solvent person, better still if actually rich.
With the compiler Of dupes' directory it is
entirely different. Experience has taught
the swindler who uses the mail for a counter
felt scheme, or, in technical phrase, ''green
goods" enterprise, that it is well to address
people In sore need of money. The man in
good circumstances will not be likely
to consider favorably a proposition to
ruin his reputation for the gain of q
few dollars. So that one method of COM
.piling lists Of persons who may be ex-
pected to send $40 in order to get 800 of
counterfeit money has been to note down the
name of every business man or farmer who
has mortgage or judgment entered against
him in the county registers Office The
small farmer struggling against a mortgage
may listen to the tcmpter. In another branch
Of the swindling business by mail, not con-
nected with offers of counterfeit money, the
lists are supposed to contain only the names
Of persons Of very moderate means, because
they alone would be likely to buy cheap
jewelry, fifty cent diamond rings silver
plated spoons at 81 dozen, ETC. For the
purpose of getting at such people, the tax
lists are gone over and all the rich people
weeded out.
Besides tho actual copying Off of lists of
names which are found in the public build
ings of every small town on the tax list or
real estate records, a common method en-
ployed by dealers in such lists is to send out
circulars couched as follows:
. DEAR SIR-We are engaged in the manu-
facture and sale of one of the best stoves
ever made in this country 1t is a patent
device, whereby a novel arrangement of
draughts enables You to save so per cent of
the amount of coal used in other stoves; tho
crate is also patent one, which enables YOU
to save o per cent. Of the coal, so that within
year the stove will pay for itself We feel
that this stove Will he blessing to the COM
munity and that it is a charity to introduce
it. We therefore wish to make you the fol-
lowing offer: II you will send US the names
and addresses of $50 persons living in your
town we will send you valuable engraving
worth at least So, and if our circulars to the
persons whose names you send result in the
sale of more than five stoves we will send
You one stove gratis
No one but those in the business have any
idea of the number of persons who go to
work and write out the $50 names and send
them on, never to hear any more Of the Won
derful stove or its manufacturers But, if
they were to inquire carefully, they would
discover that some of the persons whose
names they have given were invited sooner
or later to buy counterfeit money or fifty
cent diamond rings This method of obtain
ing names has been going on for years, and
some Of tho rascals who thrive upon it are
bold enough to advertise in the country pa
pers that they will send their engravings in
return for names. A gentleman who has had
considerable experience in ferreting out
swindlers who use the mails said that the
whole stock in trade of many of these
swindling concerns consists in their lists of
names; therefore, they are willing to pay
we'll for a list which is known to be reliable
The average price to swindlerS who offer to
sell counterfeit money is said to be fifty
cents for every 100 names, and it is agreed
that the lists must be returned in good order
after having been once used, SO that some
new kind of game may be tried upon the un-
fortunates whose names are upon it. When
the swindler wants to try new game he has
to buy his list from the regular dealer and
pay his fifty cents 100.
Whenever scheme is broken up by the
authorities an attempt is made to seize the
list of dupes, and invariably the attempt is
'foiled. Evidently the experts in this kind
of business know the money value Of such \
lists, which are guarded with the utmost
care That these lists are not always thor
oughly reliable is often shown by the invita-
tions to buy counterfeit money or chromos
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